Egyptian folk dance
Tahtib
(
Egyptian Arabic
:
?????
,
romanized:
ta???b
) is the term for a traditional stick-fighting
martial art
[1]
originally named
fan a'nazaha wa-tahtib
("the art of being straight and honest through the use of stick").
[2]
The original martial version of tahtib later evolved into an
Egyptian folk dance
with a wooden stick.
[3]
[4]
It is commonly described in
English
as a "stick dance", "cane dance",
[5]
"stick-dancing game", or as ritual
mock combat
accompanied by music.
[6]
Nowadays, the word
tahtib
encompasses both martial practice and performance art. It is mainly practiced today in
Upper Egypt
. Tahtib is regularly performed
for tourists
in
Luxor
[7]
and
Aswan
.
[8]
The stick used in tahtib is about four feet in length and is called an
asa
,
asaya
,
assaya
, or
nabboot
. It is often flailed in large figure-eight patterns across the body with such speed that the displacement of air is loudly discernible.
History
[
edit
]
The oldest traces of tahtib were found on engravings from the archaeological site of
Abusir
, an extensive necropolis of the
Old Kingdom
period, located in the south-western suburbs of
Cairo
. On some of the reliefs of the Pyramid of Sahure (V dynasty, c. 2500 BC);
[9]
the images and explanatory captions are particularly precise and accurate in their depiction of what seems to be military training using sticks. Tahtib, with archery and wrestling, was then among the three disciplines of warfare taught to soldiers.
Three of the 35 tombs of the
Beni Hassan
necropolis (XI-XII Dynasties, 1900 ? 1700 BC) near the town of
Minya
,
[10]
contain engravings showing scenes of tahtib. Similar engravings can be seen in the archaeological site of
Tell el Amarna
(XVIII Dynasty, 1350 BC),
[11]
some 60 km south of Minya. In addition to its role as military training, tahtib matches were also popular among peasants and farmers. The first evidence of the festive representation of tahtib can only be seen in the
New Empire
(1500 ? 1000 BC), as shown by the engravings on the walls of
Luxor
and
Saqqara
[12]
Early Christian writings mention tahtib as a leisure activity and a popular art performed by men during weddings and celebrations. It is believed that tahtib developed as a game or performance art in this civilian context.
Performance
[
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]
As with its combative counterpart, the dance form of tahtib was originally performed by men, but female versions were later developed. In one form, the women dress as men and imitate the males. Another female variant is performed flirtatiously and with less aggression. The latter, called
ra's el assaya
(dance of the stick) is incorporated into cabaret or
Raqs sharqi
performances. The stick used for this dance is generally more lightweight and hooked at one end like a cane. It is often embellished with metallic-coloured foil or sequins. The costume is a simple
baladi
dress. Performances include balancing the cane on the head, hip or shoulder.
Music
[
edit
]
Music in tahtib features the
tabl
(bass drum) and
mizmar
(folk oboe).
[13]
The right hand uses a heavier stick with a hooked head to beat out the
dum
(the deep sound from striking the center of the drum) which drive the heartbeat of the rhythm, while the left hand uses a light twig as a switch to produce rapid-fire staccato "taks" (the higher sound from striking the edge of the drum).
Modern tahtib
[
edit
]
Modern tahtib
[14]
is an attempt to re-explore the sources of tahtib as a fighting art, and to enrich them as a martial practice
[15]
[16]
by codifying the techniques and teaching them structurally. As in traditional tahtib, the main target is the opponent's head, as it is considered the most fragile and vulnerable part of the body. Consequently, techniques revolve around protecting one's own head while reaching the head of the opponent. Victory can be attained either by a single clean touch to the head, or three touches to the body. Unlike its traditional counterpart, modern tahtib allows both women
[17]
and men to practice in mixed groups.
[18]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to
Tahtib
.
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"Le tahtib, un Art martial egyptien pluri millenaire vivant"
.
Egyptos
.
- ^
"Tahtib"
.
Akban Ninjutsu Academy
.
- ^
"Tahtib and Egyptian Raqs al-Assaya: From Martial Art to Performing Art"
.
www.shira.net
.
- ^
"
'Tahtib': The once martial art that turned into a dance"
. Retrieved
2018-05-08
– via DailyNews.
- ^
Michael B. Bakan,
World music: traditions and transformations
, McGraw-Hill, 2007,
ISBN
978-0-07-241566-7
, p. 279.
- ^
Biegman, Nicolaas H. (1990).
Egypt: moulids, saints, sufis
. Kegan Paul International.
ISBN
9789061791225
.
- ^
video
Luxor Egyptian Stick Fighting (Tahtib) tourist exhibition
- ^
Lonely Planet
(2009).
The Cities Book: A Journey Through the Best Cities in the World
. Lonely Planet. p. 54.
ISBN
978-1-74179-887-6
.
- ^
T. El Awady, ibid, VI.6.2, p. 208-210 ; D. Farout,
Tahtib l’art de l’accomplissement et du baton
, ?gypte Afrique & Orient n° 60 (janvier 2011), p. 67-69.
- ^
P.E. Newberry
, ' Beni Hassan, Vol. Part 1. London, England: Kegan Paul, Trench, Tubner & Co., Ltd., 1893.
- ^
Davies, N. de G. (1905).
"
The rock tombs of El-Amarna
, Part II, Pl. 37-38, (reprinted 2004)"
(PDF)
.
Egypt Exploration Society
. Retrieved
16 May
2021
.
ISBN
0-85698-160-5
- ^
W. Decker,
Sports and games of Ancient Egypt
, Yale, 1992, p. 83, pl. 52 ; J. A. Wilson,
Ceremonial Games of the New Kingdom
, JEA 17 (1931), p. 211-220
- ^
video
Tahtib street performance on bass drum and Mizmar backstage
- ^
video
1st demo ever at Martial Arts Int'l Festival Paris 2010
- ^
Adel Paul Boulad,
Modern tahtib : baton de combat egyptien
, Budo-Eds, 2014,
ISBN
2846173389
, p. 279.,
ISBN
978-2846173384
- ^
"Nevia"
. Archived from
the original
on July 15, 2014.
- ^
"Video: Stage de Tahtib a l'Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris"
.
- ^
"Le tahtib, tout en baton"
. May 16, 2014 – via Le Monde.
Further reading
[
edit
]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to
Tahtib
.